Pentagon's contract awards plummet in January

[WASHINGTON] Poet TS Eliot called April the cruelest month. Defence contractors would pick January.

The Pentagon's contract awards dropped 66 per cent from December to US$8.44 billion, the lowest level in at least 22 months, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. The previous low during that period was US$12.1 billion in January 2013.

None of the biggest contracts announced last month - including those to General Electric Co and United Technologies Corp - cracked US$1 billion. Last month's awards often lag because the Pentagon often pushes out more agreements in December, the end of its first quarter. The seasonal slump was exacerbated by defence budget reductions and a temporary spending bill that limited contracting last month. "The elements have certainly come together," said Mark Amtower, partner at Amtower & Co, a government contracting consulting firm in Clarksville, Maryland.